Ty LaForest facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Ty LaForest |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
 |
|||
| Third baseman | |||
| Born: April 18, 1917 Edmundston, New Brunswick, Canada |
|||
| Died: May 5, 1947 (aged 30) Arlington, Massachusetts, U.S. |
|||
|
|||
| debut | |||
| August 4, 1945, for the Boston Red Sox | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| September 30, 1945, for the Boston Red Sox | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Batting average | .250 | ||
| Home runs | 2 | ||
| Runs batted in | 16 | ||
| Teams | |||
|
|||
Byron Joseph LaForest (born April 18, 1917 – died May 5, 1947) was a Canadian baseball player. He played in 52 games in MLB for the Boston Red Sox. Ty, as he was often called, mostly played as a third baseman. He was born in Edmundston, New Brunswick, Canada. His family moved to the United States in 1921. He went to high school in the Boston area.
Contents
Ty LaForest's Baseball Journey
Ty LaForest was a right-handed player. He was about 5 feet 9 inches tall and weighed 165 pounds. During his time in MLB, he had a batting average of .250. This means he got a hit in 25% of his turns at bat. He hit two home runs and brought in 16 runs for his team. He also scored 25 runs himself.
Ty was a good defensive player. He made only five errors while playing third base. He also played in the outfielder position a few times. He did not make any errors there.
Starting His Professional Career
Ty LaForest was one of many players who only played in the major leagues during World War II. He started his professional baseball career in 1943. He was 26 years old then. He began in the Red Sox's farm system, which is where teams train younger players.
In 1944, Ty played for the Scranton Red Sox in the Eastern League. He played in the outfield that year. He had a batting average of .296 and brought in 101 runs. This good performance helped him get promoted in 1945. He moved up to the top Red Sox farm team, the Louisville Colonels. While playing for Louisville, he set a record. He got six hits in six turns at bat in one game. This was against the Minneapolis Millers.
Playing in the Major Leagues
Ty LaForest made his first big-league appearance on August 4, 1945. He played third base in both games of a doubleheader. This was against the Washington Senators at Griffith Stadium.
A few weeks later, on August 26, 1945, he played his first game at Fenway Park. This was also a doubleheader, against the Philadelphia Athletics. In those two games, Ty hit two home runs. He also got five hits in total. His great play helped the Red Sox win both games. Later that week, Ty got a single hit. He then scored the only run of the game. This helped the Red Sox beat the New York Yankees. On August 31, he had four more hits. These included two triples, in another doubleheader with Philadelphia.
After the Major Leagues
In 1946, Ty played at the Triple-A level. This is just below the major leagues. He played for Louisville and Toronto. His batting average was .228 that season. This was his last year playing baseball.
Ty LaForest became sick with pneumonia during the winter of 1946. He was still weak from his illness. He then had a heart attack in Florida in 1947. This happened during spring training. He passed away on May 5, 1947, in Arlington, Massachusetts. He was 30 years old. In 1986, he was honored. He was inducted into the Boston Park League Baseball Hall of Fame.
See also
- Shearon, Jim (1994). Canada's Baseball Legends. Malin Head Press. ISBN: 978-0-9698039-0-4.
